When Geese Take Flight

Have you ever paid attention to the behavior of birds? Well, on a cool, crisp day in the early Fall several years ago, I took time to observe a gaggle of geese who had stopped at a wetland area to rest, feed, and water themselves.

On this particular morning, I was on my daily walk around the park when I noticed that a group of geese had gathered across the street. Standing at two trees near the road several yards from the group were two geese, which I imagine were the guards or centurions –whose job was to warn the group of any impending danger.

So, there they stood at attention. One at a tree to the south and the other at a tree to the north, though both trees were in very close proximity to each other. Great strategy, I thought. Each goose was strategically positioned to observe movement coming toward them in either direction. My curiosity got the best of me, and I crossed the street to observe, but I stood a good distance from the guards. They saw me, and perhaps in their minds, I was an enemy – possibly I was a bit too close for comfort. Within a minute or two of my standing in my spot, one of the guards made a sound, and both casually turned and walked toward the group. As they got closer to the group, I noticed all of the geese beginning to quietly and calmly move about, and they quickly arranged themselves into some noticeable order. I wondered what would happen next.

There was a leader out front who honked several times, and the assembly continued. Then, lo and behold, the geese took flight in a PERFECT V-FORMATION. It was a splendid sight to see. It was, in fact, magnificent. I watched them soar into the sky as their wings seemed to dance on the waves of the wind. They banked to the left, and after a while, they banked to the right, and then they were off into the great beyond. Their movement was like a very gracefully choreographed dance with the wind. I thought this was one of the most majestic wonders of nature. It was, by far, one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen – the geese taking flight.

Such organization, such precision, such obedience. Each goose knew its position in the formation. I wondered---how did they know? Who assigned them their spot? Who assigned the task of the guard to the two geese? How did the guards know what to do and when to do it? How was the leader selected? Did they have to earn that spot by proving their dominance in the group? The questions in my mind were endless.

I hoped that I would have had an opportunity to observe the geese in the exact location the following year, but much to my chagrin, that would never happen because the university nearby built a parking lot for students where the geese had probably been coming for centuries. What a pity they will have to find another suitable location to rest, water, and feed themselves as they migrate south for winter.

Maybe now, in another place at another time, I will get to experience the majesty of geese taking flight.

Note: Adlee is an active Shaw Temple A.M.E. Zion Church member in Smyrna, Georgia. The above observance took place and was written in September 2006 in Gary, Indiana, where she was a member of St. Luke A.M.E. Zion Church.